The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Utica it's a good idea to figure out when it's possible to plant caladium.

Planting Calendar for Caladium

Frost tolerance for caladium:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Caladium require warm weather which tells us that you need to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant caladium in Utica is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant caladium and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your caladium may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your caladium indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Utica. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Utica and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Utica you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your caladium if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Utica

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Utica

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Utica.